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<h1><a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/26609578">This Is Not A Problem (If I Don't Want It To Be)</a> by <a class='authorlink' href='https://archiveofourown.org/users/whiteduck6/pseuds/whiteduck6'>whiteduck6</a></h1>

<table class="full">

<tr><td><b>Category:</b></td><td>Avatar: The Last Airbender</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Genre:</b></td><td>Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Angst, Gen, Hurt Zuko (Avatar), Hurt/Comfort, Implied/Referenced Child Abuse, Implied/Referenced Homophobia, Iroh (Avatar) is a Good Uncle, Ozai (Avatar) Being a Terrible Parent, Whump, bc ozai, heavy on the comfort</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Language:</b></td><td>English</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Status:</b></td><td>Completed</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Published:</b></td><td>2020-09-23</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Updated:</b></td><td>2020-09-23</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Packaged:</b></td><td>2021-05-06 04:49:02</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Rating:</b></td><td>Teen And Up Audiences</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Warnings:</b></td><td>No Archive Warnings Apply</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Chapters:</b></td><td>1</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Words:</b></td><td>2,734</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Publisher:</b></td><td>archiveofourown.org</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Story URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/works/26609578</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Author URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/users/whiteduck6/pseuds/whiteduck6</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Summary:</b></td><td><div class="userstuff">
              <p>An alternate Modern AU telling of how Zuko got his burn.</p>
            </div></td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Relationships:</b></td><td>Iroh &amp; Zuko (Avatar)</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Comments:</b></td><td>8</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Kudos:</b></td><td>117</td></tr>

</table>

<a name="section0001"><h2>This Is Not A Problem (If I Don't Want It To Be)</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Author's Note:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
      <p>Hi! Please be aware that this is a Zuko Burn Origin fic, so there's all the child abuse warnings that come with that. I don't show any child abuse on-screen, but it is implied. Also, there's some fairly gory description of a burn. See end notes for more detailed warnings. </p>
<p>Title from a slightly altered lyric from Tessa Violet's "Wishful Drinking".</p>
    </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Iroh is awoken by his phone ringing. </p>
<p>He rolls over, glancing at the dim glow of his alarm clock. It's nearly midnight. He scrubs at his eyes, considering going back to sleep. But the phone continues to ring insistently, and he sighs, sitting up and sliding his feet into slippers so he can shuffle over to the phone and answer it. </p>
<p>"Hello?" he says blearily. </p>
<p>"Uncle, it's me," Zuko says from the other end. "I'm at the door. Can you let me in?" </p>
<p>"Zuko?" Iroh is awake instantly. "What are you doing here? It's late." </p>
<p>"I know," the boy says, and his voice wavers almost unnoticeably. "Please, can you just let me in?" </p>
<p>"Of course," Iroh says, "one moment." He buzzes the door open, lurking by his door, waiting for Zuko to make it up. What could be so urgent that Zuko needed to show up at his apartment at this hour? He hurries to his kitchen, pouring water into his electric kettle and turning it on. </p>
<p>A gentle, barely-there knock at his door - barely a knock, more of a tapping - startles Iroh out of his own thoughts. He hurries to the door, tying his robe tighter around himself. Rain pounds on his windows as he opens the door to his soaking wet nephew dripping into the hallway carpet. </p>
<p>"Zuko? Are you okay?" he asks, even though he knows his nephew despises the question. Zuko keeps his head down, his hands tucked firmly in the bulging pockets of his sweater. </p>
<p>"Can I use your washroom?" he says, not looking up. </p>
<p>"Of course, but, Zuko, what's wrong--" </p>
<p>Zuko slips past him easily, ducking into the bathroom and shutting and locking the door firmly behind him. </p>
<p>"I'm making some tea, Zuko," Iroh says, tapping gently on the closed bathroom door. "I'll leave some pajamas outside the bathroom for you, too. Come out whenever you're ready." </p>
<p>He selects a pair of Lu Ten's old pajamas from the storage boxes he can't bear to get rid of yet - they smell a bit musty and they're a few sizes too big for Zuko, but they're warm and dry and they'll be good enough. He leaves them folded in a neat square outside the bathroom door, listening carefully for a moment, his ears straining to hear any sounds at all. </p>
<p>He hears a quiet, hitching breath, and what sounds like a wax paper wrapper tearing. He leaves Zuko to his own devices.</p>
<p>The kettle is boiling, now, so he gets some jasmine tea from the cupboard and gets a teapot ready. He sets up two teacups on his kitchen table, letting the tea steep while he scrubs at his eyes with the heels of his hands and tries to calm his racing heart. </p>
<p>
  <i>Why is he here? In the middle of the night? On a school night?</i>
</p>
<p>It wasn't uncommon for Zuko to come over for an hour or so after school occasionally. But he never visited after dinner, and certainly not at night. By the time Iroh was carefully pouring the tea with shaking hands, he could hear the bathroom door carefully creaking open. </p>
<p>He didn't hear Zuko's approach to the kitchen, but wasn't surprised when he rounded the corner. His hair was tied back with one of Iroh's hair ties, revealing a large mass of gauze pads haphazardly taped over Zuko's left eye. </p>
<p>"What happened?" Iroh breathed, his stomach dropping out from under him. He had an idea he knew <i>exactly</i> what happened, but he didn't want to confront that possibility until every other one was eliminated. </p>
<p>"Nothing," Zuko said. "I'll be out of your hair in a few minutes, I just--" </p>
<p>"No," Iroh said, "you're not going back there. I don't care what your father says."</p>
<p>The tension in Zuko's shoulders faded almost imperceptibly as the boy took a sip of his tea. </p>
<p>"I'll take you to a walk-in clinic in the morning," Iroh continued, "so a real doctor can take a look at that." He nodded towards his nephew's bandaged eye. Now that it was out in the open, Iroh could see the bandages extended all the way to Zuko's ear. What had his brother done?</p>
<p>"No!" Zuko exclaimed. "No doctors. It's fine. I can take care of it." </p>
<p>"Zuko," Iroh said gently, "if it's this bad, a doctor needs to at least take a look. I don't have to be there while they look at it, if you don't want me to, but it's for your own good." </p>
<p>Zuko pursed his lips tightly as his eyes watered. He glared into his cup of tea for several long moments of silence. </p>
<p>"Fine," he finally spat out, with more vitriol than a thirteen-year-old should have. "But I'm not going outside until then." </p>
<p>"Of course," Iroh soothed. "That's completely fine. Do you think you can sleep?"</p>
<p>Another long hesitation. "I'll sleep," Zuko finally said, in a tone that suggested he wouldn't be able to sleep if he tried. </p>
<p>"If you can't, please wake me," Iroh said, even though he knew his nephew wouldn't. "Or feel free to read any of my books, or watch TV as long as you keep the volume down. If you need anything, let me know." </p>
<p>Zuko opened his mouth like he was going to say something, hesitated, and shut it again. "Thank you, uncle," he said, in the most subdued tone Iroh had heard all night. "Could I . . . Maybe, have some Tylenol?" </p>
<p>Iroh's heart ached at the thought of what could be under the heavy layers of bandage. "Of course," he said, standing up from the table and rummaging through his cabinets. He shook one of the little red tablets out of its container, handing it to Zuko who swallowed it easily with a mouthful of tea, like he did this every day. "Is there anything else I can get you?" </p>
<p>"No," Zuko said, "you should go back to sleep, I don't want to keep you awake." </p>
<p>"I don't mind," Iroh protested, but Zuko shook his head. </p>
<p>"I'll just . . . I'll be fine," he said, "really. Goodnight, uncle." He downed the rest of his tea and shuffled off to the living room. Iroh put the dishes away and got some blankets and a spare pillow from his linen closet, setting them on the opposite end of the couch Zuko was sitting on. </p>
<p>"Try to get some rest, nephew," Iroh said, "it's the best medicine." </p>
<p>Zuko coughed out what may have been a genuine laugh. Iroh smiled, a little weakly, and slowly headed back to his own bedroom. </p>
<p>It took him a long time to fall back asleep. </p>
<p> </p>
<p>----</p>
<p> </p>
<p>The next morning, Iroh was as groggy as he could expect from staying up for such an extended period of time in the night, but Zuko was still fast asleep on his couch, the good side of his face tucked deep into the pillow Iroh had given him. If it weren't for the thick bandages, it would have been a cute image. </p>
<p>Iroh put Zuko's now-dry clothes into the washing machine, taking them from where they were hanging on the rack in the bathroom, and started making breakfast - putting rice in the cooker and making a simple miso soup - but as soon as he started rummaging around the kitchen, he heard Zuko stirring. </p>
<p>He shuffled over to the table, looking for all the world like he hadn't slept a wink last night. Maybe he hadn't. He plonked himself down on one of the dining room chairs, resting his chin on the heel of his hand. </p>
<p>"Did you sleep well, Zuko?" Iroh asked, glancing back as he stirred the soup base. </p>
<p>Zuko hummed in a way that sounded negative, but gave no further answer. </p>
<p>Iroh sighed a little. He wished his nephew would open up a little more - Iroh would be able to help with whatever was going on far better if he had an idea of what he should be helping <i>with</i>. Soon enough, though, the rice cooker beeped and the soup was done, and Iroh was dividing the breakfast into bowls along with cups of green tea. </p>
<p>They stayed mostly silent through breakfast, although Iroh noticed Zuko was having a slightly harder time with the chopsticks than he normally would. He kept trying to grab rice and missing, and Iroh winced internally at the thought of what had happened to his nephew's eye. His depth perception was off now, because it was bandaged, but was it damaged beyond repair?</p>
<p>Soon after they finished eating, the buzzer on the washing machine went off, and Zuko looked up for the first time that morning, with a questioning look on his face. </p>
<p>"I was just washing your clothes," Iroh said. "I unfortunately don't have any others for you, so you'll have to wear them again today, is that alright?" </p>
<p>"Yeah," Zuko muttered. </p>
<p>Iroh stood up to put them in the dryer and put the dishes away, and all the while Zuko didn't move from his spot at the table, gently stroking the bandages on his face like he couldn't quite believe they were there. </p>
<p>"After your clothes are dry and you get dressed, we'll head to the clinic, alright?" Iroh said, sitting opposite his nephew with his pai sho set under his arm. Zuko shrugged, not meeting his eyes. </p>
<p>"In the meantime, why don't you indulge an old man and play a game or two with me?" Iroh said, setting up the board. Zuko rolled his eye dramatically, but Iroh could see the hint of a smile tugging at his lips. </p>
<p>"Fine, uncle," Zuko said, "but don't complain when I beat you at your own old-man game." </p>
<p>"I would never," Iroh smiled. "You go first." </p>
<p> </p>
<p>----</p>
<p> </p>
<p>They were getting very strange looks at the walk-in clinic. </p>
<p>Iroh imagined how this looked - an old man with a bandaged-up boy - but he tried his best to appear nonthreatening, flicking through a magazine as Zuko sat idly. </p>
<p>"Do you have your phone on you?" Iroh asked, a little surprised that his nephew wasn't using it.</p>
<p>"No," Zuko said, looking away again. "Left it at home." </p>
<p><i>That</i> wasn't a good sign. Zuko didn't even have time to get his phone?</p>
<p>"He . . . Can track it," Zuko said, lowering his voice. "I . . ." </p>
<p>"I understand," Iroh said. His gut clenched at the thought of Ozai trying to get Zuko back. "We'll see what we can do about getting you a new one soon, alright?" </p>
<p>"Iroh Sozin?" the doctor called, and Iroh stood up, his nephew following suit. They headed down the hallway and into the office, Iroh hesitating outside. </p>
<p>"I can wait out here if you want me to," Iroh said, "if you're not ready for me to know." </p>
<p>Zuko took a deep breath. "No, come inside," he said, jerking his head in a "come in" motion. Iroh stepped in, silently grateful his nephew had opened up to him, even just this little bit. He had always been such a closed-off child, but it had been worse than ever yesterday. </p>
<p>They waited a few more minutes before a doctor joined them. "Good morning, I'm Dr. Li. What can I help you with?" </p>
<p>"My nephew . . ." Iroh looked to Zuko, wondering if he would take over the conversation. </p>
<p>"He thinks you need to take a look at this," Zuko said dismissively, gesturing to the wad of bandages on his face. </p>
<p>"Well, I can't exactly see what's wrong with all those bandages in the way," Dr. Li said, "and they're probably due for a change anyway. Can you take them off for me so I can see?" </p>
<p>With shaking hands, Zuko started peeling the bandages away. Dr. Li offered up a small garbage can to dispose of them in, but Iroh could barely pay attention to that as more of the boy's ruined face was revealed. </p>
<p>There was a large, blistering burn spreading across his left eye, stretching to his ear. Hair had been burned off, leaving bald spots and uneven patches, and the left eyebrow was completely gone. His eye barely opened, and what eyeball was visible was cloudy white. There were . . . <i>char marks</i> from a gas stovetop stretching across Zuko's cheekbone. </p>
<p><i>Ozai,</i> Iroh thought, swallowing down bile, <i>what have you done?</i></p>
<p>Dr. Li, to her credit, kept a very straight face at the horrible reveal. "Okay," she said, "and how did this happen?" </p>
<p>"Burn," Zuko said, so softly Dr. Li had to lean forward to hear. </p>
<p>"Okay." She pursed her lips, jotting down some notes on her clipboard. She turned to Iroh. "Sir, could you leave the room for a few moments?" </p>
<p>"Of course," Iroh said, standing up to leave, but Zuko grabbed his shirtsleeve. </p>
<p>"No!" Zuko exclaimed, shaking his head aggressively. "It's okay, it--it wasn't--it wasn't him."</p>
<p>"Can you tell me who this was?" Dr. Li asked, very softly. </p>
<p>Zuko pursed his lips tightly, shaking his head again, his good eye tearing up. "He'll kill me. He'll kill me if I tell anyone." </p>
<p>Dr. Li and Iroh exchanged a worried look. "You don't have to tell me, Zuko," she said, "but . . . Your--" she flipped through her notes, "--uncle should press charges. This . . . Isn't okay." </p>
<p><i>Understatement of the century,</i> Iroh thought, but kept his mouth shut. </p>
<p>"Just bandage it up and we'll go," Zuko said, his voice cracking as fat tears dropped onto his hands, clenched into tight fists on his lap. </p>
<p>Dr. Li nodded, snapping on a pair of rubber gloves as she disinfected the burn. It must have hurt like hell, but Zuko didn't make a sound through it, even when he couldn't stop tears from dripping down his cheeks. </p>
<p>The doctor told Iroh how to take care of burns, and he nodded along when appropriate, committing it to memory. The thought of <i>how could he do this? How could he</i> do <i>this?</i> kept circling in his brain as he watched Dr. Li lay fresh gauze on Zuko's face. </p>
<p>She sent them out the door with a prescription for an antibiotic cream to put on the burn, as well as referrals to a physical therapist as well as a regular one. She stopped Iroh as they were leaving, grabbing his shoulder as Zuko hurried to the car. </p>
<p>"You need to press charges," she whispered, staring right in his eyes. "Whoever did that?" she pointed to Zuko, idly playing with the handles of the car door. "They need to be put away for fucking life. If you care about that boy, you'll do something about this." </p>
<p>Iroh nodded, unsure of what else to say. She nodded once, serious as the grave, and let go of his shoulder. </p>
<p>Iroh unlocked the car and they both climbed in. Iroh curled his hands around the steering wheel but made no movement to start the car. </p>
<p>"Why did he do this, Zuko?" he breathed out, more to himself than anyone else. In his peripheral, he saw Zuko duck his head. "You don't have to tell me--" </p>
<p>"He caught me kissing someone," Zuko said, a firm declaration. A dare to say anything bad about it. With his bandaged eye, Zuko had to turn nearly 180 degrees in his seat to look Iroh in the face. </p>
<p>For a moment, Iroh's train of thought came to a screeching halt as he pondered the absurdity of that statement. Ozai burned half his son's face off for kissing someone? "Why would he--?"</p>
<p>As he spoke, the gears clicked into place in his head, and he couldn't even finish the sentence as something cold settled in the pit of his stomach, as he realized the importance of what Zuko was telling him. </p>
<p>"Because it was a boy," Zuko said, in the same harsh tone. Iroh let his forehead drop to the steering wheel as tears welled in his own eyes.</p>
<p>"Zuko," Iroh breathed, his voice hitching with effort to keep his sobs down. He had to keep it together, if only for his nephew. "Zuko, Zuko. I'm so sorry. He shouldn't have done that." </p>
<p>When he finally lifted his head up again, wiping his eyes, Zuko was staring at him, mystified. </p>
<p>"You're . . ." the boy swallowed thickly. "You're . . . Okay with it?"</p>
<p>"Oh, nephew," Iroh said, shifting in his seat a little to clutch his slip of a nephew to his chest. "Of course I'm okay with it. There's nothing wrong with you. I will <i>never</i> let him do anything to you again. He'll never touch you again." </p>
<p>And for the first time, Zuko let himself cry.</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Author's Note:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>Warning for burn: Ozai burns Zuko's face on a gas stovetop, offscreen. Burn described as being "blistering" and having "char marks." I don't go too much into detail, but keep yourselves safe and if you aren't comfortable reading this because of the description, that's totally fine!</p>
<p>I hope you enjoyed reading! As always, constructive criticism is appreciated : )</p></blockquote></div></div>
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